thanks very much. happening now, breaking news, and ahn folding tornado disaster, a series of killer storms before dawn, and right now a desperate search for survivors. , the danger isn't over. the storm's not threatening the southeast and mid-atlantic regions. people are being warned to brace for possible severe weather. and politics, the hopefuls are gearing up for the biggest battle yet, super tuesday in the next six days could see the fiercest fight in this rather tumultuous campaign. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." we're following the breaking news this hour, a tornado outbreak that scraped parts of the midwest this morning, killing at least nine people and injuring more than 100. hardest hit, harrisburg,

illinois, where at least six people died, including two children. within the last half hour, we learned the tornado was a category ef-4, with winds, get this, up to 170 miles an hour, and as wide as two football fields. in the last hour, the mayor spoke at a grief-stricken news conference. >> we have suffered the loss of lives. we've suffered many injures, and millions of dollars worth of is it damage, but first and foremost the loss of lives breaks my heart today. in neighboring missouri, the governor puts the damage in the tens of millions. there's also damage in kansas and kentucky, where the national guard has been called out. let's get the latest, chad myers is watching what's going on. the heartbreaking to see it, not a whole lot of warning. what's going on now? >> i think the most frightening

part is that it happened in the middle of the night. those tornado warning sirens that are outside, they're not made to wake you up. they're made to tell you to go inside. people were already inside. they died in their homes, in their beds because they either didn't have it, didn't have a noaa weather radio. especially in the southeast, it happens every spring, these storms keep going in the nighttime. you talk about nebraska, oklahoma, about sunset the storms die off. in the southeast, especially right here in the harrisburg, in illinois, kind of the south -- i know it's midwest, but they did not stop. even at 5:00 this morning they were still rotating with significant tornadoes on the ground. wolf, i just want to give you an idea of this storm. from where the snow is, to the east and to the west, we're talking 1600 miles. from where the storms noises are in louisiana, all the way back up here to the top of the next

watch box, almost up to pittsburgh, pennsylvania, that's 900 miles farther, so the most significant stuff will be here, and then through nashville, down into mississippi, and alabama. that's where these watches will go through the nighttime. the need that noaa weather radio. it's the best $20 or $30 you will ever spend. >> even if you hear it, chad in the middle of 9 night and you're sleeping, are you supposed to run into the bathtub? what are you supposed to do? >> believe it or not, everybody that died here, they all had warning of at least ten minutes. these storms were big. sometimes you won't get a warning on a very small 80, the 0-mile-per-hour storm, maybe they'll be too far away or won't show up on the radar, but these were big tornadoes, so yes they were on doppler ray dare. the the people didn't get the

warning or didn't heed it, and sometimes you're if you're a small billing, it isn't survivable even if you are in a -- you have to be endground, and many of these people did not have basements. >> chad, this is still a developing story. stand by. lisa, what are you seeing? >> communities in illinois, kansas and missouri were hit particularly hard, at least six in harrisburg, illinois and three in missouri, and those numbers may go up as rescue crews dig through the collapsed buildings. it was still dark outside when this twister swept near wichita, kansas. you can see the path carved out. pickup trucks crushed. >> the windows went out just like a big -- and i told my wife

hit the floor, and she said i'm down already. >> pretty much we knee at that point it was a lost cause. >> in harrisburg, illinois, the pictures speak for themselves. >> i can't believe the measure of damage. it's like there was no structure, and took it completely out. as you can tell, it's total devastation. all the way down through this whole area, i'm just glad it happened at night, no one was ought work. >> we were able to get a loot of people out of the houses. it's unreal, like a war zone. >> reporter: fortunately staff this notice of the storm and moved patients in the hospital to safety. nurse jane harper took these pictures. >> i sure heard the explosion when the walls blew out and the windows went and the south door that's an electric door got blown in, and the ceiling tiles

started to fall. the water started to surge, and the fire alarm came on. all the power went out. >> the tornado also sheared homes in indiana and missouri. branson, missouri's touchist district hit by the storm. here's coco reporter wenting owens. >> reporter: storms did rip through the entertainment district, a lot of theaters are here, a lot of plazas. >> the storm front moved on, leaving behind devastation and disbelief. >> to see how it we want through and took off a part of this town and skipped over and disappeared, it's just unbelievable. >> very tragic instead. the harrisburg police chief announced they are imposing a curfew to try to keep folks safe, remaining in effect until 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. hardbreaking stories.

one mu size narrowly escaped. i want to bring this report from dave davis of kotv. >> reporter: denny's job is a musical performer, but also did he know would he also become a survivor. denny and his driver were in this tour van when it -- >> i heard the rocks mainly start hitting. i heard a loud roar, and it was terrible. i felt like somebody swooped me up. i immediately fell on my back. i'm pretty sore between the shoulder blads. i cut my wrist. the counter top got me. it was just a rush. >> denny found out his tour van had been thrown across the road, with he and his driver inside.

he says he was lucky to survive. that's the general feeling around town. >> just thankful you're okay. >> yeah, and i think a lot of people are. it's a mess. >> i'm on the second floor, and you could hear -- my mom refused to come 0u69 house. i'm like, mom, you need to come. let's go. >> reporter: everyone was a survivor in branson today. there were no deaths. now with tourism season around the corner, it's time to start picking up the pieces and rebuild. >> the season's going to be hurting for everybody this year, i don't even -- this is devastating for branson. >> dave davis from our affiliate kotv reporting. to find out more about how to help victims of the tornadoes, go to cnn.com/impact. there you will find details about organizations making a difference and what you can do to help those in need. cnn.com/impact. we're staying on top of the

breaking news. we'll have more, including surveying the damage from the air, plus the latest on this search for survivors of these killer storms. also the super high stakes on super tuesday, why the next six days could see the fiercest fighting yet in the republican race for the white house.

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horrible tornadoes, the story is still developing, we'll get back and show you what's going on. in the meantime, let's check in with jack cafferty. he's got "the cafferty file." gas prices rose for the 22nd day in a row. inching ever closer to a national average of $4 a gallon. aaa says the nationalwide arches stands at 3.73. gas prices up 14% so far in year, already top $4 in several states. there are reports of $5 gasoline here in the new york area, and some are suggesting before it's over, gasoline could top $6. the market reflecting fear that tensions would lead to a war with iran. signs of an improving economy,

growing worldwide demand and speculators have also driven prices up. we've been here before, way back in the 1970s, the nixon and ford administration imposed price controls, reacting to rising gas prices caused when opec cut back its production. what followed was interminably long lines at the stations and an artificial shortage of fuel. almost 40 years ago people panicked. gas stations only stayed open a few hours a day, and since they couldn't raise prices, they sold up shop when they, and people bought gas on the black market at exorbitant markets. as consumers feels more intense pain at the pump, there could be pressure on the government to intervene once again. just today secretary of state

hillary clinton says she's skeptical about what she calls the reasons for the increase in gas prices. she says it deserves careful attention from congress. good luck with that. anyway, here's the question -- should price controls be imposed on gasoline? go to cnn.com/caffertyfile. you can post a comment on my blog or go to our post on "the situation room's" facebook page. wolf? >> jack, thanks very much. i want to get back to the breaking news. joining us on the phone is the sheriff of saline county, keith brown, saline county is home of the devastated city of harrisburg, illinois. my heart goes out to you and all the folks devastated by these tornadoes. first of all, is it still the number six confirmed deaths in harrisburg? >> yes, sir. as of just a few minutes ago i consulted with the coroner's office, and we have six known to be dead, four female, and two

males have been reported so far today. >> just on a personal note, where were you at the time of these tornadoes? were you anywhere near thinks tornadoes in harrisburg? >> my residence is approximately half a mile from the path of the tornado, and, you know, of course we had just put out a nixl alert to the community and the storm sirens had been activated just after 4:30, the national weather service identified a storm in our area and identified as a potential -- it was a -- it turned out to be a long day, and very devastating day to several families here in our community. >> i'm sure. the pictures are really awful

when you say an alarm went off, a siren went off, in other words, is that audible in the middle of the night for people in deep sleep? can they hear that? >> no, it's actually the outside sirens are for of course we always advocate for folks to have noaa weather radios. that's inside the house alarm system to be notified when these things are happening. a lot of folks depends on outside warning devices or they don't have anything. in our particular county, we use an alarmt system called nixl, it's an alarm or alert system to the community. that's a telephone, e-mail, text

message type of phone alarm obvious loy the tornado struck the southeastern part of town, and destroyed an apartment complex. that's where most of our fatalities were in and around that area. >> have you ever seen anything like this in your community, sheriff? >> not in this community. i was a state police officer for 26 years, so i've been sent to a number of tornadoes, a number of devastating disasters over the years, but this is the first one at home that i've had to deal with. >> what does your community need now, describe what it's going through? >> we're working through the unified command systems and working through our needs. amron has approximately 300 trucks on the way here. we have a tremendous amount. we have an outpouring from the

community at lard has been very good. at this point the red cross is feeding our emergency workers and those displaced. the baptist church here in harrisburg has put up cots for those who may be displaced. we're working through it as communities do, and we have a plan in place and we're following through. >> are there still individuals that are missing now? >> the information is we have all accounted for at this time. of course when you read -- we're not found any or have a report of -- but when you have a rural community, oftentimes it's a while before you're notified of someone who lives in a remote

area or lives alone or doesn't have a large -- >> how many people live there? >> we're just under 10,000 for the communities, just under 30,000 for the county. >> sheriff, good luck to everyone in saline county, especially in harrisburg. we appreciate you sharing a few moments with us. we'll check back if that's okay. >> i certainly appreciate your concern and we certainly appreciate the prayers out for those that were lost in this terrible disaster. >> thank you, sheriff. sheriff keith brown of saline county, which is the home of harrisburg, illinois in southern illinois. the tornado devastation may not be over. the storm is pushing east, and at least six states could still be hit. we're going to tell you where it's headed. stay with us for that. also to see the scope of the damage you need an eye in the sky. a police hell copper pilot show us the powerful images. [ male announcer ] what if we told you that cadillac

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the republican presidential candidates are gearing up for their biggest battle yet. super tuesday, only six days away, when ten days will hold their primaries and caucuses, 437 delegates at stake. mitt romney heads into it with a much needed campaign boost, winning two primaries last night, but he faces serious challenges in some of next week's contest. jim acosta is following all of this for us. what's the latest here? >> reporter: mitt romney may have some momentum, but now the trick for romney is to make sure that big mo doesn't turn into

another uh-oh. >> would you like to check the lineup? >> yeah, fire it up. >> reporter: under the microscope once again, he toured a factory in the state of ohio. where better to get hands on with the equipment? >> i've got to press a button, which will be mea heavy lift. >> there it goes. >> for romney the real heavy limits -- but polls show the map could get messy. romney's pitch -- listen to the voters who put hem over the top. >> interestingly people who said the economy and they voted for me overwhelmingly. >> we're heading to super tuesday with wind at our back. >> reporter: rick santorum insists the wind is still at his back, claiming that he'll come

out of the that contest with a tie. >> here's the important part, delegates. that's what this is all about. we actually won half the congressional districts, so we're going to walk off michigan with 15 delegates, and he's going to walk out with 15 delegates. we tie. >> reporter: but according to cnn's exit polls, the former pennsylvania senator still has challenges. as expected, romney won among suburnen and wealthy voters, but also captured the catholic vote. he also won union members, even does thats. a reminder of the controversial robo-call he rang in michigan that appealed to non-republicans to cross over and make mischief. but it's newt gingrich who may have the most on his mind. the former speaker hinted his campaign could be finished if he doesn't win his home state of georgia on super tuesday. >> that is the key building block that we have to have to

move forward in the presidential campaign. so georgia really does matter, and the campaigning we'll be doing for the next few days really does matter. >> reporter: as for all of that crossover mischief in michigan, it turns out there may better more to come, wolf, there is open primaries, which is why the romney campaign staged a conference call to call on rick santorum for no more dirty tricks. on the delegate math that rick santorum was talking about, our polls unit at this point estimates a 13-13 delegate tie coming off michigan with still four delegates unallocated. so we could say it's a 15-15 tie as the senator is saying, wolf. >> not yet. we'll see what happens. jim, thanks very much. now that the campaign in michigan is over, what did we

learn about the close rates in michigan last night? >> let's fool up on what jim acosta was talking about. these two men have completely different constituencies. they tend to be older, woism. they also tend tore wealthier, incomes, $100,000 above are romney republicans. when you ask them what the key called is, defeating barack obama, so romney voters care an awful lot about electability. let's look at santorum voters. they identify themselves as very conservative, the most conservative voters in republican primaries. they are blue collar. incomes there are 100,000 and below. when you ask them what is the key quality for a presidential candidate? instead of saying electability, they care much more about strong

moral character. so what romney has to do is convince these conservative republicans that he's just as conservative, and santorum has to convince the romney voters that he has a fiscal policy and he is not just a cultural conservative, because they don't want that. >> if you're romney, what's the big price? >> ohio, ohio, ohio. ohio is a big state, generally regarded as the bellwether. another thing that mitt romney has to think about he needs to win in the south. he probably will win in the state of virginia. santorum is now, ron paul is on the ballot, but there are lots of republicans saying, you know what? the republicans party is strong in the south. he's got to make a play.

if he can't win georgia, maybe he haught to go to tennessee, heless to prove he's a contain of some depth and breadth. >> thanks very much. we're following the breaking news this hour, the tornado outbreak that's killed at least nine people in missouri and illinois, with more deadly weather possible in the coming hours. a helicopter pilot from our affiliate wlky is observing the damage in elizabethtown, joining us on the phone right now. bill, we have powerful images from your helicopter. walk us there you what you saw. this is a trucking big, an ef-2

right now. you can see the video it is uprooted semitrailers. the tornado was probably i'm guesstimating maybe 1/16 of a mild in width. there were some homes completely leveled, one that stuck out in my mind was a cinder block home that was completely destroyed. >> do you know the numbers in terms of casualties? those injured? >> well, that's the good news, if there is any in a situation

like this. the video that you've been looking at here is one area just south of elizabethtown, kentucky. we went to two other areas, hodgenville, kentucky, that think a more residential area where it was taking out home. so there were three isolated areas, luckily no confirmed injuries, but very devastating results of this tornado that came through. >> i don't know if you have seen tornado destruction like this before, but how is the community dealing with it? >> i think as expected. there's first shock to set in, but the thing you'll see when

elizabe elizabethtown is not that large of a town, but moth of the time you'll see these folks get out, neighbors helping neighbors, usually a lot of cars around, people go out and even leave their destruction and go to try to help a neighbor. that's the good thing about what we typically see in kentucky and the surrounding areas. but i can tell you, there's a lot of destruction and there will be a lot of cleanup in the days to come. bill dereamer, bill, thanks very much for helping us appreciate what's going on. >> great, good talking to you. we're going to stay on top of the breaking news. we keep getting new information on the search for survivors, the ongoing severe weather threat now facing a very big part of the country. plus super tuesday, posing a super challenge for mitt romney. stay with us. hey, did you ever finish last month's invoices? sadly, no.

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we're talking about olympia snowe, workiknown for working w both lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. she said she's had enough of the my way or the highway mentality in washington. those are her words. dana, her announcement took a lot of people by surprise. what's been the reaction. >> it took them by surprise big time. she had a lot of campaign staff, a good staff in place, a pretty good shot at reelection, but she had some searing words for the polarization here, the reason why she wants to go. flashback, september 2009. >> i want to do my job, and our job is to sit here and do it as

long as it takes. >> a frustrated olympia snowe out on a limb, working with democrats on health care reform. >> people in this country are rightfully worried to whether or not we can possibly get this right. >> snowe was the only republican to vote for the president health care plan. she ultimately opposed the bill, but was the last republican trying to work across the aisle on the issue. it makes her surprise retirement announcement so telling. >> people are deeply frustrated and angered by the inability of electioned official here in washington to get together. >> the maine republican tells cnn even she can no longer stomach the partisanship. >> that failure, i think, has really eroded the public's confidence about the direction of this country. >> reporter: just eight years ago she was a part of the gang of 14, bipartisan senator

senators trying to unblock nominee, and isn't riss are now a rare breed, and others are leaving this year, club joe lieberman. >> people are pulled apart by this process, and end up in warring camps. >> reporter: in recent partisan year snowe's attempts to find compromise sometimes angered both parties. in 2007, she challenged the bush iraq policy. >>ed administration has not placed the emphasize on the reply kale resolution that's absolutely essential. >> reporter: and during the health care battle when democratic negotiators tried to woo here. >> whatever snofr snowe wants to do, i'm for her. >> some liberal democrats lashed out. >> this is the united states of america, this is not the united states of maine. >> reporter: after 33 years in congress, snowe knows her departure is a bad omen for the institution she still loves. >> even in the most perilous times facing our country, we

couldn't get together. >> reporter: snowe says she still sees a, quote, vital need, but she could see dedicating another term, six more year of her life to politics, because she says it's become the lower common denominator. very telling that something like olympia snowe has simply had it with congress. >> very telling indeed. i know a lot of people will pit her. dana, thanks very very much. we're going to go back to the breaking news parts of the midwest devastated by powerful tornadoes. we're talking to a woman who had the walls of her home completely ripped off. the most important day in this campaign is only a few days away. who is leading in these key states. that and more coming up.

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joining us is james carville and terry hold. santorum may have lost, didn't get enough votes in arizona and michigan last night to carry the popular vote in both states, but he's looking relatively good coming up for tuesday, guys. look at this, some recent polls in ohio, for example, a quinnipiac poll. in tennessee also next tuesday, this is a week ago santorum 38, romney 20, gingrich 15, paul 13.

in oklahoma a couple weeks ago, santorum 38, romney 20, paul 15, gingrich 13. this is by no mean over. we could be going on and on. terry, you're a republican. is that your assessment? >> yeah, take all that polls and throw it away. after last night i think we'll see a lot of change in all these states. i look for it to be a rather mixed outcome next tuesday. santorum has opportunity in states that is more afterable like oklahoma. if he had real dough, he could go after ohio. there's been only one constant, the volatility of polls numbers. i think we'll see all these polls change over the next several days. >> several polls coming out in the next few days. james you've been convinced it's romney's to lose for a long

time. do you still believe that? >> absolutely. i rarely say this, but i literally agree with almost every word terry says that. i've ruined your reputation, terry, i apologize. we know who's going to win, we're just not sure how he's going to get there and when does somebody decide this game it over. i complete le great with the statement that old polling numbers are for the most part meaningless, and it will go on for a bit longer. the two most atrachive nominations, wolf, you remember in '76 between president ford and governor reagan, and then of course in the famous 2008 senator obama and senator clint clinton. it seems that romney's troubles are getting dean here. >> if newt ging witch were to lose in georgia next tuesday, i

assume he would drop out of the race. where would those pro-newt gingrich supporters go? to santorum or ron paul? mitt romney? >> i don't make that sums, because i don't know what gets him out of the race. it's been a while since he's had a victory. there's lots of a2r5k9ive qualities, but ultimately i think thee go to the alternate tough to the romney candidate that is best positioned to take those votes. i agree with james, though, the road gets very steep, very narrow and expensive if you're going to take out mitt romney at this point. >> is it at all conception in your mind that newt gingrich could lose his home state nest tuesday? >> yeah, i've been seeing those polls numbers where he's there

and the electorate is awfully conservative, but one thing about this process so far is that which you think is unconceivable becomes conceivable. the on thing to me would be the nominee, but besides predicting that, i'm going to back off here and see, because, you know, there's a lot of church people there. if they're thinking santorum has a chance and gingrich doesn't, there could be strategic voting, that's imminently possible. i don't think that romney carries georgia. if he does, this thing will end faster than i thought it would t. listen to rhirhine prescribe. >> i just --

>> is the spin or real? >> james just said it. if a long protracted fight would disdenver somebody, barack obama wouldn't be in the white house today. the fact of the matter is this election has consequences, there's a lot of at stake, and republicans have taken this process very seriously. they want the best guy, the one that can take out p.m. p.m. we were doing these kinds of interviews in june of 2008. i suspect this goes on for a bit longerened and that's fine. >> thanks very much, terry, james, hold that thought, because we have to move on. right now we're following breaking news a tornado is moving east right now. we're following the path of 9 storm. stand by. the unexpected death of a beloved pop star. we're getting new details coming up as well. that was me trying to be discreet

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saw news in the world of entertainment. davy jones of the popular 1960s group the monkees has died. ♪ cheer up sleepy jean ♪ oh what can it mean ♪ to a day dream believer ♪ and a homecoming queen that's a young davy jones. our entertainment correspondent kareen wynter is following this story. what do we know? what happened here? >> reporter: well, wolf, sadly cnn can confirm that singer/songwriter davy jones has died. he suffered a cardiac arrest this morning near his home in hollywood, florida. he was rushed to a local hospital, bun unable to be resuscitated. hi is best known as the lead singer of the pop group the monkees. they firmed expressly for the

purpose of creating that well-known american television show with the same name. that i hinge songs included last training to clarksville, and pleasant valley sunday and day dream believer. the original monkees disbanded shortly after the show went off the air. he had various incarnations of the monkees, and there was even talk of a reunion tour recently. his manager and brother-in-law released a statement saying all of his family, friends and fans mourn the loss. we were fortunate to which you have he will be missed tremendously by all who knew him. jones is survived business hi wife and four daughters, his family and the entertainment industry are just mourning today. singer ringo starr reacted to the news saying -- got bless davey, peace and love to his family. this was a man who loved

entertaining. he started working in the business, good et this, at the age of 11. he performed on broadway in "oliver" as a teenager, but as much at he really loved performing, his first love was horses. jones actually trained to be a jockey at one point. his manager says he was near his horses in florida when he passed today, wolf. >> in the world of entertainment beyond, davy jones of the monkees. very sad indeed. thanks for that. coming up in the next hour we're following the breaking news, a new look at the damage. we'll also hear from survivors and stay on top of the is ongoing threat of yet more storms. plus a rare report from directly inside iran. cnn's ivan watson is there. he hayes details of an alleged rift at the highest levels of the iranian government. people with a machine.

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and the location your car is in, the moment you land. it's just another way you'll be traveling at the speed of hertz. let 'go right back to jack for "the cafferty file." >> should price controls be imposed on gasoline? we're nearing $4 a gallon national average with predictions it could go as high as 6. bud writes -- understandable that placing price controls on products when prices are

inflated is popular, but most economists warn against it. it interruption the normal flow of market supply and demant. they tried this in the '70s and got gas lines that stretched for half a mile. >> fred in michigan writes there should be controls, gasoline is now a necessity, knolls a luxury. producers need it to move products. it's a key part of the economy, and i'm tired of speculators getting rich off my unavoidable pump pain. gary -- no, jack, price controls won't work. we need to kick our oil habit. we have plenty of alternatives. all we need is a forcing function like high gas prices to drive the right action. >> dee dee writes, yes and besides that we need to nationalize the oil companies. we need to release oil to scare the speculators out of the

marketplace. steve in illinois writes this, no, this is a perfect k356r78 where the republicans have it right. it can happen. let market forces work. the only way we're ever going to get off oil imports is when it's too expensive. easy for me to say, i don't have a job right now, so i don't have to drive to work, but the theory is sound. if you want to read more, go to my blog, or through or post on "the situation room's" facebook page. jack cafferty, thank you. and you're in "the situation room." happening now, breaking news. deadly tornadoes could strike any moment, as a monstrous storm moves east this hour, an up-to-the mind forecast of where the danger is right now. the popular tourist town of branson, missouri took a beating. i'll talk to a woman who was sleeping in her trailer home

when it flipped upsidedown. c is live inside iran, reporting on a rift inside the country's dangerous regime. glee this is cnn, breaking news. homes appeared lives on a powerful storm sim. we're getting in more stunning pictures. one of the latest states to take a pounding. the death toll has climbed to at least -- with winds estimated at 170 miles an hour. dozens of people are injured. we're told you can see this kind

of destruction that's about four football fields wide. >> it's unbelievable. i can't believe the measure of damage it did to this building. it's like this was no structure. as you can tell, it's total devastation. all the way down through this whole areas. recorded this video of a twister tearing through kansas. just imagine what it might be like to see this kind of thing coming your way. all these monster storms have been devastating. survivors say they have never seen anything like this. we want you to see what's going on. our own brian todd is taking a closer look at the devastation. brian? >> wolf, the fact that a lot of these toucheddown likely saved a lot of lives, but in some

pockets we are still seeing total devastation. the mayor of harrisburg, illinois says crews are searching piece by piece for survivors. the hards hit by tornadoes, some touching down in the darkest hours invite morning. most of the deaths were in harrisburg. we have suffered the loss of lives and millions of dollars worth of damage, but first and foremost, the loss of our lives breaks my heart today. those fatalities could rise in number. the mayor says the twister was oregon for several miles, the destruction about three or four football fields wide. hundreds of houses and commercial buildings crushed. the tornado that hit harrisburg had an early rating of ef-4, the second most powerful on the rating scale. at a medical center there, those

winds tore off windows and the building's entire southern wall, leaving several patient rooms exposed. one witness says hospital staffers had enough time to move those patients to the better protected center of the building before the tornado hit. missouri also suffered fatalities, at least one of them was a person thrown from a mobile home. in branson, a tornado stretched across nine miles, according to the governor. tens of millions suffered. one resident described what it was like to be jolted awake by a twister. >> we woke up to the windows imploding in on us. it was pretty bad deal. >> listen to this account. >> i was laying on the couch. all of a sudden i started hearing a train. they say when you hear a train, you do. i got up, took two steps off the couch, and then me and the two dogs i have and the trailer started rolling down the hill. you can see what's left.

after i rolled five times, i can remember everything about it. once it hit the ground on the fifth time, i saw daylight. >> reporter: back in harrisburg, illinois, as residents were still dealing with shell shock, the mayor was resolute. we will rebuild and make this city stronger. >> reporter: others will have to brace for more. possibly into thursday, people from alabama, georgia, tennessee, kentucky and north to ohio could be in their path or possibly hit by very strong thunderstorms. wolf? >> brian, thank you. much more on the devastation one of our other than the correspondents, ivan watson has been allowed inside iran to

report live. i just want to warn our viewers p. broadcast capability is limited. ivan, there's been a potential rift is that what this election is coming down to? >> reporter: certainly some of the political analysts are saying there is competition between rival -- within this election, a block of candidates supporting ahmadinejad and others that are basically against him and more allied with the the reasons being there have been some public disputes over the last year where ahmadinejad disappeared for 11 days after

the supreme leader overruled his decision to sack, to fire an intelligence minister, and there's been a lot of criticism and even some investigations comes from certain branches of the government into some of ahmadinejad's top aides. it's important to point out, wolf, that the supreme leader has been making a public appeal for unity in the run-up to this vote, saying it's very important for all iranians to come together to put aside their differences and show their support for the 33 years. >> do you get a sentence that they international sanctions that have been placed. well, there has certainly been an intention devaluation, depreciation of the value of

iran's currency over the last few months against the dollar. it's dropped by some accounts by nearly half its value over the course of the last few months. everybody i talked to complains about sudden inflation in prices, just the most basic commodities, iranian produced things like milk that shouldn't in theory by affected by iran's currency -- eeshl specially right before the election they're telling me they're on the verge of that hardship is being felt.

xh has led this -- since getting there, i don't know how long you've been in tehran, what's it like? what have you been doing? inchts we've been traveling around town, there is a spa fair amount of suspicion about us, particularly after the aftermath of those 2009 presidential elections when you had unpress dinned street protests that really challenged the legitimacy and credibility of the iranian -- with a lot of human rights violations reported by human rights groups and activists as well, and also this is coming at a time of heightened pressure and rhetoric between iran and its rivals, the u.s. and israel, where is this talk of war again and again, which i think is raising serious

concern among ordinary iranians. some of the suspicion, we were detained on our first night out here, wolf when we were filming campaign posters, held in a police station about three hours. we were trying to do what we were told we were allowed to do, and one of these officers accused me of trying to hurt his government. that gives you a bit of a sense of some of the sensitivities and the suspicion right now. what's fascinating, wolf, is the iranians, most of them don't talk immediately about elections. they're still excited about the win of the director, the best foreign film award at the academy awards last weekend for his film "a separation." anybody i mention that to, their faces light up. that is a ray of hope for people at a time of increased isolation and international tension. wolf?

>> ivan watson is on the scene for us. the national weather serve has just confirmed with estimates winds. the winds blue, joining us on the phone from brandon, missouri, the storm's survivor, donna lowe. thanks very much for joining us. tell us where you were, what happened when this -- >> i was in bed sleeping. >> i ended up standing straight up.

>> we're showing our viewers, donna, pictures of your trailer, your home upside down. did you get injured? were you badly bruised? >> no. >> i was holding on to that bed frame. >> and we can see your trail upsidedown. were there no sirens? no warning whatsoever? >> i could hear the winds, that's all i heard. what time did this occurred? >> i have no idea. i had gone to sleep at 12:30. i cake up within, and they said

there was a tornado going through north of us, so i thought -- that was quite a ways from where i lived. i don't think i was asleep too long. i know by 2:00 everybody was on the other hand, long before 2:00. i was already out of the trailer by two. >> well, i have a very dear friend named jamey, she had a feeling that something was bad. she took me to her place. she's the one that was handling, trying to get stuff salvaged, what she could out of the trailer. >> when that tornado came through and turned your trailer upsidedown, what were you holding on to? >> nothing. i didn't know i was flipped all the way over. i knew the trailer had moved.

and i felt like maybe it was on its side or something. i was afraid to more too much, but i was almostity side down. i just didn't know it. >> this isn't the first time you've got through a tornado, is it, donna? >> no, i was in joplin, too. my car got destroyed in joplin. >> last year. so you lived through that tornado and now lived through this tornado. you told us you're, what, 65 years old and have some disabilities at the same time. is that right? >> right. right. >> so you've got a lot of things going on right now, but i assume the community in brandon -- i know it's a wonderful community there, they're going to come together, not only rebuild, but they're going to help you get through this. have authorities and others

helped you already? >> i have not left jamie's house. i didn't feel up to going back to the trailer today a burch of kids they all went, was trying to salvage what they could out of mire trailer. >> good luck. one story, i know there's a lot of stories there in illinois, kentucky and kansas, and these tornadoes are moving in an easterly direction right now. donna, thanks very much. >> you're welcome. have a great day. >> thank you. you've seen the kind of damage this killer storm can cause. stand by to find out if it's headingy your direction. a surprising weakness from rick santorum. this focus on his faith

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turning to the republican badges for the white house, where rick santorum isn't just dismissing mitt romney's wins last night in arizona and michigan, he seems energized and he has reason to be energized. according to the latest delegate count, he may have lost michigan in the popular vote, but he did win 15 delegates there, the same number that mitt romney. what's the latest there, john? >> that's right, wolf. rick santorum may have lost two state primaries last night, but today in tennessee, he told me he feels like he's the big winner, because mitt romney had to spend so much money in his

own home state of michigan. high winds in the south delayed rick santorum's trip from michigan to knoxville, but when he got to the pulpit, he worked the weather into his speech. >> but we have a lot of wind at our back heading here to tennessee. we'll be taking it across the super tuesday states. >> reporter: it was partly true, even though santorum lost in michigan and arizona, he still came in close enough in michigan to get about the same number of delegates as romney in his home state. here in tennessee and other super tuesday states, santorum was leading. the down side for the campaign is a loss is still a lots. these losses exposed his weaknesses. after spending so much time recently making the case for the catholic church in a health insurance showdown with the obama administration over contraception, and touting his beliefs that faith and government should still be intertwined, santorum actually lost the catholic vote by about

six percentage points, though a well-known practicing catholic himself. >> it sounds like you lost the catholic vote. >> we won michigan last night by coming out of michigan with 15 delegates out of 30 delegates in mitt romney's home state you want to talk about one segment, c'mon, joe, this is a huge win for us. >> we went into his backyard. we came out of there, we were excited about -- >> santorum came under fire last week saying that a famous speech, a catholic, by the way, on separating faith and government made santorum want to throw up, though he now says he regrets the issue. 2k35i7b insiders say they're

moving toward more emphasis on the economy, including high gas prices, and less on social issues, because frankly some rep political strategists say the economy is the first thing on voters' minds. ultimately in michigan, jobs and the economy, auto industry, unemployment are the overriding issue that affect every michigan voter. if you're a catholic voter, you deal with those issues every day as well. >> reporter: santorum has another event scheduled here in tennessee this evening. he says he'll be heading the major super tuesday states before next week. wolf? >> all right. joe, thanks very much. we're getting ready for super tuesday in six days, but let's bet back to a bunch of breaking news right now. parts of the midwest torn apart by a deadly storm system pushing into the mid-atlantic region right now. at least nine people have been killed. there's more danger tonight. let's bring in our severe weather expert, or meteorologist

chad miers, first of all, where is 9 storm heading right now? >> we have storms with tornadoes now into virginia, lee county, virginia, the very western tip into tennessee, all the way south into mississippi. so this is a long line of weather -- >> much of the east coast from georgia further north if you're saying to virginia could be affected. >> all the way through the night. all the way through the nighttime hours when you're sleeping. you know what this? >> yeah. >> you have one? >> no. >> there you go. >> you're giving they to me? >> i'll give you the plug later. >> this is wake you up in the mid of the night. radio shack, walmart, whatever, $20, $30, the best you'll ever spend. >> in washington, d.c.? >> you do. you can program your own county, your borough in new york. >> you keep it on all the time it's battery powered. >> the old once would go on the -- by the time the storm got

to you, this only goes off where you program it to go off, your county, arlington, fulton county, georgia, whatever you want, you plug in your county. when a warns for your county, it goes off, you take shelter. >> it only will wake you up if it's nearby, you won't get those early morning wake-up calls unnecessarily. >> the old ones were annoying. they did more damage than they did good. >> i was always under the impression you need these if you're in a tornado alley, somewhere that gets a lot of tornadoes, not necessarily the east coast. >> we had joplin, missouri last year, now harrisburg, illinois, you don't think of those as kansas, nebraska, oklahoma, texas, not really tornado alley, especially birmingham, tuscaloosa, people have been buying these out of stock, literally. >> show us where they're headed. >> >> if you were in this

western part of virginia. big storm cell, and that's rho tailing where the pink bon, and then back into mississippi, all the way down the like. a storm going near blackhawk-mile-per-hour mum. it's kind of that lottery. you don't want to win the lottery tonight. let's hope your town doesn't get in the way. >> thanks very much. nurses frantically struggling, as one tornado blows a hospital to pieces. our breaking news coverage will continue. [ woman ] my husband, hank, was always fun.

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a look at this. these are live pictures from kentucky of the devastation courtesy of our affiliate w.a.v.e. you can see the destruction in that area right there. that's just one home destroyed, obviously, by this series of tornadoes that's ripping through parts of the country right now in missouri and illinois, here in kentucky, moving easterly right now. we're getting severe weather throughout the east coast of the united states. harrisburg, illinois in the southern part of the state was pummeled by a tornado with estimated winds up to 170 miles an hour. george sells is a reporter with cnn affiliate wtvi. he's joining us from harrisburg right now. set the scene for us, george. what was it like?

i assume you lived through this tornado experience firsthand. >> well, the storm raised through here. it was about 5:00 this morning when it hit the area here in harrisburg. that storm system was moving 60 miles an hour, if you think about how quickly you drive, and what it brought with it, like you said, the tornado an ef-4, 170 miles an hour winds to give us an idea of some of the damage. i had to ask somebody how many businesses were in this strip mall before this morning. there were seven stores here a dollar tree, a sporting goods store among others. the good news, it was 5:00 in the morning, no one was here basically, but you go to some video. the bad news about that, the very bad news about this predawn storm is the fact that so many people were asleep in their beds and not awakened by tornado sirens. six people in and out confirmed dead, some of the worst of it in a neighborhood not far, maybe 3b 00 yards from where i'm

standing. a bunch of new duplex homes, and at least four of the six confirmed deaths took place there. i talked to a woman 24 years old who spent two hours this morning digging for rubble looking for her grandmother. her husband eventually was among the rescuers who found the body, and it went on from there. a number of people by this afternoon were digging through the wreckage, trying to finds in they could as far as belongings, but earlier in the day, that digging had been for people. reporting here more than 100 people injured in this storm in addition to the six dead. then you get into the property damage about -- somewhere between 250 and 300 homes either damaged or destroyed just in this strong city of harrisburg, illinois, and 25 businesses, either damaged or destroyed in harrisburg. a lot of people telling stories of sleeping through the sirens, hearing the sound of the tornado itself, that being the thing

that woke them up. one woman we spoke to, the sound woke her, she grand her kids, they ran into a hallway, and a door blew off the hinges blew on top of them and that may well have saved their lives. she and her 6-year-old twin boys as the windows in the home just exploded in on them. scary for these folksened a enormous task ahead. i'm george sells. back to you. george sells is with our affiliate ktvi. let's go to a survivor who's trying to put the pieces of her life back together. alice retzlof has been undergoing treatment for colon cancer. alice, first of all, how are you doing right now? how are you? >> we're good. we came through the storm relatively well, compared to our

neighbors, and just 20 feet from us is total devastation. >> this happened at 4:30 in the morning. walk us through what happened, what you heard and what you saw. >> yes. we were asleep. my daughters live with me. my daughter did know that there was storms in the missouri area. they were forecasting to come through possibly our area and she stayed awake and monitored the storm vicea the news and internet. she came in i guess sometime after 4:00, and woke us up and said we all need to get in the basement, that it was -- it had been in poplar bluff and it was coming our way. we went to the basement and took cover and the sirens went off,

and it was a few minutes later the sirens went off again, and tlfsz a loud boom, and then there was just silence. we came up from our basement, looked out our back door and there is a feed and gas station kitty corner from us that was totally flattened, a grain silo blown into the alley behind our house our neighbors were fleeing from their house, because it had just ripped right through their house, and we smelled gas, and we didn't know if it was coming from the gas station. and we all were going to try to get out of our homes, but it was still dark. our neighbors went running for their truck, but their truck was totally demolished. >> we're showing our viewers a picture of your home, alice, we

can see the destruction there, alice retzloff, good will you can to you and your family, all the residents of harrisburg, illinois. i know you're going to have some problems getting your chemotreatment for your cancer. will you be able to get to the hospital to do that? >> at this point they're saying no. i've tried to contact my doctor, and they said that i was on a list, that they would be calling to let me know what procedure to follow, but i haven't been contacted as of yet. >> alice, good luck to you. we're praying for all the residents in this area. appreciate it very much. >> thank you. we'll have more on the story later, but there's other important news we're following, including a potential breakthrough some are suggesting in the nuclear standoff with north korea. can the country's new leader kim jong-un be trusted. plus more 911 calls capturing the moments after that

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liberty mutual auto insurance, responsibility -- what's your policy? a potential breakthrough in the tense relationship between the united states and a key adversary, north korea, the reclusive nation saying it agrees to halt all the testing in exchange for food eight. it comes months after the death of its leader kim jong-il. joining us is fran townsend. a lot of us are sort of skeptical about this deal. what do you make of it? >> well, wolf, look, i think americans ought to be rightly skeptical. when i was in the bush administration, we did this dance with them, where they agreed not to continue with enrichment that they failed to

keep. but i think secretary clinton is right, this is the wrong right. it's the son of kim jong-il. the administration has rightly insisted there should be iaea inspectors, and they've conditioned the food aid they want to monitor to make sure it doesn't go to the elites and military, which is a common problem with food and other humanitarian aid in north korea. so i think the administration is rightly skeptical and cautious about moving forward, but i think this is a necessary step. they're going to have to try to get if they can make better progress with the son than we made with the father. >> it's fascinating to me, at someone who's been to north korea, just more than a year or so ago, that this is the first major decision on the part of the new leader kim jong-un, who is maybe only 28 years old and we'll be assessing precisely what this means.

fran, thanks very much. meanwhile, disturbing new details emerging about the troubled family life of the suspect in that deadly ohio school shooting. we've gotten some access to his juvenile records. stand by. and one person says it looks like a bomb went off. more personal stories inside those deadly tornadoes right here in the units. units. al gas producers to supply affordable, cleaner energy, while protecting our environment. across america, these technologies protect air - by monitoring air quality and reducing emissions... ...protect water - through conservation and self-contained recycling systems... ... and protect land - by reducing our footprint and respecting wildlife. america's natural gas... domestic, abundant, clean energy to power our lives... that's smarter power today. if you have painful, swollen joints, i've been in your shoes. one day i'm on top of the world... the next i'm saying... i have this thing called psoriatic arthritis.

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we're getting new information about monday's deadly shooting in ohio. let's get right to martin savidge, he's standing by in chardon, ohio. he has new details. what are you learning, martin? >> reporter: talking about t.j. lang, we filed a petition with the courts and actually we were able to gang action. in december of 2009 t.j. lane was involved in an assault where he put another boy in a

chokehold. and punched him in the face. he has a traffic ticket, and we're trying to get more records. the biggest concern by many is what motivation could he possibly have? looking at documents, here's what we found. when t.j. lane first faced a judge, neither his mother or father were in the courtroom it was a telling sign. >> 911, what's your emergency? >> it's the principal at chardon. the alleged shooter ran out the back door down the easement toward the tennis courts past the pool. >> towards the tennis courts. >> all right? >> do you have any description of clothing? >> we have white t-shirt, shaggy dark hair, tall, skinny. >> we have a name that we think. >> is that thomas? >> yep.

>> reporter: the ramp ago had many more mentally scarred. >> i turned around and i saw a shooter with a gun pointed towards somebody sitting on the bench. did you see the again go off? >> yes. >> since then, they've been asking one question -- why. authorities say lane hasn't given them any reason for the attacks. >> he chose his victims at random. this is not bullying. this is not about drugs. >> reporter: documents show he had a troubled home life and his parents often led by violent example. police reports obtained by cnn showed officers were frequently called to the home to break up domestic fights. court documents also show that his father, tom lane, suffered from anger management issues, depression and at one point even attempting suicide. he spent time in and out of jail. a court documents from 2002

describes a particularly violent attack by tom lane on another woman. it reads -- he strangled his ex-wife by the throat until she lost consciousness for several seconds. also held victim's head over a washingtoning machine and poured coal water from a utilities hose over her nose and mouth preventing her from breathing. such was his unstable background. iron prosecutor david joyce hinted it could be an argument for the defense. >> this is someone who is not well. i'm sure in our court case will prove that to all of your sdibs and we'll make sure that justice is done. >> martin, hold on for a moment. i want to play for our viewers more of those desperate 911 calls that are shedding new light on the fear that unfolded in the moments after the ohio shooting. >> 911 what is your emergency?

>> we just had a shooting at our school. we need to get out of here. oh, my god. >> ma'am, we've got a school shooting. ma'am, what school? >> chardon high school. >> chardon high school? >> yes, ma'am. >> all right. okay -- >> everyone's running away, so -- >> where is the student with the gun? >> i don't know. he was in the cafeteria, and everyone just started running. >> dysthe shooter? are you a student? >> yes. yes, i'm a student. i was right by the shooter when he pulled the gun. >> okay. who was the shooter? >> his name is thomas lane. >> did you see him shoot how many? >> i saw him take out two, and then i was gone. i was out of there. >> okay. were the students still alive? >> i don't know, ma'am. i didn't even check. i just got out as fast as i could. >> but they went down, right? >> yeah, they were laying on the

ground in blood. >> martin, i take it the chardon high school will be reopened formally, when, on friday, but tomorrow they'll have some counseling? what's the latest in terms of this community trying to get back to at least some semblance of normality? >> reporter: they're carefully trying to do this. they had counseling available for any student that thought or needed it. tomorrow they're going to allow the parents and opportunities together to go back to the high school for the first time to see it in the aftermath, and then officially classes are expected to begin on friday. there's already been groups that say they will show up on friday and be there to line the walkways of the high school to help welcome the students back. it's going to be a difficult, very emotional day. but it's a day that has to come. wolf? >> all right. good luck to all the folks in chardon. appreciate it very much, martin savidge doing great reporting for us, as he always does. we're going to have much more on the devastating

tornadoes tearing across much of the united states right now. we'll have personal accounts from our own cnn ireporters, ming up next. wait. ♪ it's morning in the himalayas... [ male announcer ] it's sweet. it's nutty. it's absolutely delicious. kellogg's crunchy nut. it's morning somewhere. with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaids, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk.

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we've been showing you some

gut-wrenching pictures from of the damage of those deadly storms that have ripped through much of the midwest. now some more personal accounts of what it was like when it hit. here's cnn's mary snowe. >> reporter: this is what's left of the patient's room at illinois's harrisburg medical center. fortunately nobody there was hurt. nurse practitioner jane harper took these photos. she says nurses rushed to move about a dozen patients to safety after a tornado warning sounded at roughly 4:30 in the morning. and then -- >> what i heard was the explosion when the windows blew out and the wall came off and the front door blew open and the ceiling came down and the water started and the fire alarm went off and metal doors closed and it was total chaos because the power was out. but what i heard really i think was the windows blowing out. >> reporter: harper credits the staff and patients with staying calm, and says there was no time to get scared. she was stun today later learn that the tornado that tore through harrisburg was so strong

it brought winds up to 170 miles per hour. >> we didn't even know the wall had come out until people started checking the rooms to make sure everybody was out. and i walked down and opened the door to this one room and there was no room there. and none of us realized that there had been that extent of damage until we started the last check to make sure everybody was out. >> reporter: in branson, missouri where a tornado was also confirmed, steve smiranzer says he didn't realize how strong the storm was until he saw boat docks crumpled behind his building and then surveyed his town. >> literally it looks like a bomb went off. it's just amazing. i mean you'll see one building that's perfectly fine, you look across the street and the branson variety theater formerly a bobbie vinton's theater is totally destroyed. just a few walls standing up. it's hard to explain because you've never experienced something like this. >> reporter: wolf, officials in branson, missouri are relieved

about one thing. that is that there weren't more people in branson at the time of the tornado. it's a resort city. has a lot of musical theaters. and the prime tourist season doesn't start for another couple of weeks. >> could have been a whole whole lot worse. thanks very much, mary for that. up next, why alec baldwin is suggesting some women may be liars. [ wind howling ] [ technician ] are you busy? management just sent over these new technical manuals. they need you to translate them into portuguese.

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lover or hater the reality tv star snooki has become a household word. now the word following her name on everyone's lips seems to be pregnant. the 24-year-old star herself isn't talking, but everyone else seems to be. cnn's jeanne moos has more. >> reporter: even if the idea of watching jersey shore makes you ill, there's no playing hooky from snooki. >> oh, my god! you can't escape her or the rumors of her pregnancy that have been reproducing like rabbits. >> looks like snooki has a meatball in the oven. >> reporter: now page 6 of the "new york post" says it's confirmed and several web sites also say she's three or four months pregnant. this despite previous denials. the. >> i definitely do want kids. but i'm not pregnant.

>> reporter: after denial. >> so you're saying no? you're saying no to this obviously? >> no. >> reporter: she acted offended saying people must think she's fat. it's an insult kind of. it sucks. because being pregnant should be a real thing and a happy thing and i'm not. >> don't women always lie when they're pregnant? >> the first trimester you certainly do because you want to get through it, don't want to jinx anything so you don't say anything. >> so isn't snooki entitled to the same thing? >> reporter: normally people are all goo goo ga-ga over birth announcements. but instead of people talking about a bundle of jersey joy, already the kid's being called jersey spore. comments online were merciless. didn't governor christie declare her uher uterus a disaster area? the father seen on the show too drunk to return her affections. no baby that night. on live with kelly the hosts

analyzed snooki's recent behavior on the show when they played a game trying bust balloons squishd between partners. >> she refused to play with us. >> she didn't want to bust the balloon. >> reporter: and if snooki snoogerred interviewers by lying, interviewers tried to snooker her back. wendy williams used beer to trap her in a super bowl toast. >> so you're not pregnant! but snooki makes no bones about it. she wants babies. >> if your babies come out not tan what will happen? >> i'll spray them. >> reporter: from the delivery room direct to the tanning salon, jeanne moos, cnn, who are you calling an spore? huh? >> new york. >> thank you very much. that's it for me. thanks very much for watching. i'm wolf blitzer in the situation room. the news continues next on cnn.